STAFF REPORT
Meeting Date: June 18, 2024
To: Honorable Mayor & City Council
From: Matthew Brown, Recreation Services Manager
Corrina Lesser, Recreation Supervisor
Subject: Second Annual Festival Beverly Hills Event
Attachments: 1. 06.11.24 Arts and Culture Commission Council Liaison Meeting memo
INTRODUCTION
On January 30, 2024, the Arts and Culture Commission and Community Services Staff asked then-Council Liaisons Mayor Dr. Julian M. Gold and Councilmember Lili Bosse to support their recommendations for the second annual Festival Beverly Hills to be held as a summer event in July and relocated from the Beverly Hills Farmers Market to Roxbury Park. The inaugural Festival Beverly Hills was held on March 12, 2023, at the Farmers Market, and through the process of staff meeting with the Arts and Culture Commission Performing Arts and Events Ad Hoc committee to plan the 2024 festival, identified the need to relocate Festival Beverly Hills to a larger and more dynamic event space, and host the event in July during the typical summer festival season. Council Liaisons supported the change of Festival Beverly Hills to a July summer event, along with the relocation to Roxbury Park, and requested that staff report back at a future meeting, with a more detailed event plan and a robust marketing plan.
At the June 3, 2024, Arts and Culture Council Liaison meeting, staff provided the more detailed event plan for Festival Beverly Hills to current liaisons Councilmember John Mirisch and Councilmember Mary Wells, and confirmed the event was scheduled for Sunday July 21, 2024, at Roxbury Park from 12:00pm – 6:00pm. Staff provided key event updates for the 2024 festival including an increase in the number of performance stages, performers and festival elements, a diverse array of cultures represented through various festival elements including participation from area consulates, the inclusion of global food trucks and dining areas.
The 2023 event held at the Farmers' Market totaled $16,000, and with the support of the City Council Liaisons, we were able to expand the event this year and reallocate funding in the Community Services operating budget to allow for an additional $31,000 to expand this event, which also included moving it to Roxbury for a total of $47,000. At the June 3 Council Liaison meeting, Council Liaisons expressed concerns about the Roxbury Park location for Festival Beverly Hills during the summer months known for travel and directed staff to explore two alternate locations closer to the visitor core and iconic Beverly Hills Meeting Date: June 18, 2024
locations – Beverly Gardens Park, and Crescent Drive between North and South Santa Monica Boulevards.
Staff provided the projected costs and impacts of relocating Festival Beverly Hills to both Beverly Gardens Park, and the Crescent Drive location, at the June 11, 2024, Arts and Culture Council Liaison meeting. Total event costs associated with relocating Festival Beverly Hills to Beverly Gardens Park are projected at $65,000, representing an $18,000 increase from the 2024 budget of $47,000 for the event. Total event costs associated with relocating Festival Beverly Hills to the Crescent Drive location are projected at $70,000, representing a $23,000 increase. The additional costs attached to relocating the festival would be necessary to provide additional event infrastructure not available at the sites and facilitating street closures not necessary at Roxbury Park.
DISCUSSION
On June 11, 2024, Council Liaisons supported relocating the 2024 Festival Beverly Hills on July 21, 2024, to Beverly Gardens Park. Beverly Gardens Park as a location will provide several benefits, including a sizeable event location with room to grow, a familiar event space utilized by the Spring and Fall Art Shows, a more manageable road closure, and ample shaded areas for festival goers – in addition to providing an area within Beverly Hills heavily frequented by visitors and tourists. Beverly Gardens Park provides an ideal festival location both for this year, and in the future. To fund the additional $18,000 necessary to relocate Festival Beverly Hills to Beverly Gardens Park, Policy and Management has identified the required $18,000 within their current fiscal year operating budget that can be reallocated to provide the funding needed for the relocation of the event.
FISCAL IMPACT
Relocating Festival Beverly Hills to Beverly Gardens Park in 2024 is projected to cost a total of $65,000 which is an increase of $18,000 above the allocated Community Services budget for Festival Beverly Hills. The additional $18,000 in funding for the relocation will be provided by Policy and Management so that Community Services can absorb the additional costs.
RECOMMENDATION
At the June 11, 2024, Arts and Culture Commission Council Liaison meeting, Councilmembers John Mirisch and Mary Wells supported relocating the 2024 Festival Beverly Hills from the initially proposed location at Roxbury Park to Beverly Gardens Park, to optimize attendance, and locate the festival near the visitor core. Staff recommends that the City Council support the relocation of Festival Beverly Hills to Beverly Gardens Park on Sunday July 21, 2024, and as an ongoing summer festival location in future years, and that City Council receive and file this report for informational purposes only.
Stephanie Harris,
Director of Community Services
Approved By
Beverly Hills City Council Liaison / Arts & Culture Commission Committee will conduct a Special Meeting, at the following time and place, and will address the agenda listed below:
CITY OF BEVERLY HILLS
455 N. Rexford Drive
Room 280A
Beverly Hills, CA 90210
IN-PERSON / TELEPHONIC / VIDEO CONFERENCE MEETING
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Tuesday, June 11, 2024
1:00 PM
Please be advised that pre-entry metal detector screening requirements are now in place in City Hall. Members of the public are requested to plan visits accordingly.
In the interest of maintaining appropriate social distancing, members of the public can view this meeting through live webcast at www.beverlyhills.org/live and on BH Channel 10 or Channel 35 on Spectrum Cable, and can participate in the teleconference/video conference by using the link above. Written comments may be emailed to [email protected] and will also be taken during the meeting when the topic is being reviewed by the Beverly Hills City Council Liaison / Arts and Culture Commission Committee. Beverly Hills Liaison meetings will be inperson at City Hall.
AGENDA
1) Public Comment
a. Members of the public will be given the opportunity to directly address the Committee on any item listed on the agenda.
2) Festival Beverly Hills
3) Adjournment
2 Huma Ahmed
City Clerk
Posted:
A DETAILED LIAISON AGENDA PACKET IS AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW AT WWW.BEVERLYHILLS.ORG
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STAFF REPORT
Meeting Date: June 11, 2024
To: Arts and Culture Council Liaisons Councilmembers John Mirisch and Mary Wells
From: Matthew Brown, Recreation Services Manager
Corrina Lesser, Recreation Supervisor
Subject: Festival Beverly Hills
Attachments: 06-03-24 Arts and Culture Council Liaison Staff Report
INTRODUCTION
At the June 3, 2024 Arts and Culture Council Liaison meeting Community Services staff and Arts and Culture Commission presented an event planning update for the 2024 Festival Beverly Hills.
At this meeting staff shared confirmed details of the event such as the date, Sunday July 21, 2024, and the event time 12:00pm – 6:00pm. Staff provided a number of additional event details, identifying the means by which the event programming aimed to accomplish the established goals of building on the success of the inaugural festival, and continuing to establish Festival Beverly Hills as a cultural destination for both Beverly Hills and the Greater Southern California region.
Through the continued collaborative efforts of staff and the Arts and Culture Commission Performing Arts and Events Ad Hoc, staff highlighted the 2024 Festival Beverly Hills event programming and marketing strategy, confirmed partnerships, and ways the festival would showcase a diverse array of cultures. Some of the articulated goals for the 2024 Festival Beverly Hills, as articulated through Ad Hoc meetings, were to engage more of our Los Angeles area consular corps for participation, secure artists and festival elements, representative of the diversity within Beverly Hills and the Greater Southern California region, and include pop-up dance performances, and elements of engaging spectacle.
Some of the plans detailed for the 2024 Festival Beverly Hills included:
• Two performance stages, and multiple smaller areas of festival activation • Representation from a wide range of cultures and consulates • A diverse range of musical and dance performances, including both professional and cultural dance companies
• Global DJ sets, poetry, and puppeteering performances Meeting Date: June 3, 2024
• Record and book fair pop-up
• Food truck hubs with multiple dining and picnic areas • A robust marketing plan was shared, including event postcards, event signage, digital advertising, social media campaigns, and more
The costs for 2024 Festival Beverly Hills, as planned at Roxbury Park, comes out to $47,000, fits within the allocated event budget, and can be absorbed within the Community Services budget. The Arts and Culture Commission Performing Arts and Annual Events Ad Hoc Committee has identified additional talent that could be secured if additional funding was provided. Notable artists that could potentially be added to the festival lineup have been identified, and range in cost from approximately $5,000 - $15,000, Staff requested direction from Council Liaisons on whether they would like to see any additional type of festival programming, and if so, what the corresponding level of additional funding they would support in a request to the full City Council.
DISCUSSION
At the June 3, 2024, Arts and Culture Council Liaison meeting Council Liaisons expressed concerns about the intended Roxbury Park location for Festival Beverly Hills, and the ability to attract adequate crowds at that location during the summer months, often popular for travel, and without school in session. Alternate sites for Festival Beverly Hills were then suggested as options, to place the festival closer to areas within Beverly Hills more frequently visited by tourists and visitors, and near sites more famous and iconically known.
Council Liaisons preferred that some additional festival locations be explored, that would locate the festival closer to the visitor core of Beverly Hills, and sites that would more easily draw upon visitors and tourists in addition to residents. Two additional locations were suggested, including Beverly Gardens Park, and the block of Crescent Drive between North Santa Monica Boulevard and South Santa Monica Boulevard, in front of the City Hall campus. Council Liaisons identified that both locations would accomplish bringing the festival closer to the visitor core and help associate Festival Beverly Hills with more of the iconic symbols of Beverly Hills. Based on their request to bring forward information associated with moving to one of the suggested locations, staff has worked to identify the feasibility, and positive and negative impacts, associated with relocating Festival Beverly Hills to either Beverly Gardens Park, or on Crescent Drive.
Beverly Gardens Park:
• Event costs relocating Festival Beverly Hills to Beverly Gardens Park:
o Event production costs would increase by $18,000 to $65,000 o Beverly Gardens Park event location will incur additional event rental infrastructure costs, including dining, additional tenting for artists, and portable restrooms.
o Estimated street closure costs 6am – 10pm: would be $9,000 • Benefits relocating Festival Beverly Hills to Beverly Gardens Park:
o Sizeable and flexible event location, with the ability to grow or reshape the footprint in future years if desired
o Destination for other Arts & Culture signature programs like the established bi-annual Art Show
o Increased potential for organic visitor engagement due to the location's high visibility and iconic location
Meeting Date: June 3, 2024
o Shade and picnic opportunities that will encourage attendees to stay longer at the event
o Well known event space: institutional knowledge and experience producing large-scale, multi-faceted events in the park
o Maximum flexibility on event set-up
o Road closures managed by City staff
• Challenges relocating Festival Beverly Hills to Beverly Gardens Park:
o No built-in on-site green room for artists
o Increased vendor needs for restrooms, picnic tables, tenting, and other Festival infrastructure
o Traffic/neighborhood impacts due to road closures
Crescent Drive/City Hall:
• Event costs relocating Festival Beverly Hills to Crescent Drive/City Hall:
o Event production costs would increase by $23,000 to $70,000 o Crescent Drive event location will incur additional event rental infrastructure costs, including dining, additional tenting for artists, and portable restrooms.
o Estimated street closure costs 6am-10pm would be $15,000 • Benefits relocating Festival Beverly Hills to Crescent Drive/City Hall:
o Increased potential for organic visitor engagement due to the location's high visibility
o City Hall is a striking visually iconic backdrop for the main stage o On-site artist’s green room
• Challenges relocating Festival Beverly Hills to Crescent Drive/City Hall:
o Relatively fixed event footprint, with less ability to grow or reshape the footprint in years to come if desired
o Increased vendor/partner needs including
▪ Restrooms, picnic tables, tenting, and other Festival infrastructure
▪ Road closure (use of vendor required to close Crescent) ▪ Likely need to extend the festival space (for example, utilizing the Wallis Anenberg motor court to provide a space further from the main stages, for the Storytelling Hub, and record and book fair pop-ups).
o Minimal shade and picnic options which may limit or shorten audience attendance
o Traffic/neighborhood impacts due to road closure
At the direction of the Arts and Culture Council Liaisons, staff are providing the various costs, and event planning considerations, if there is a desire to relocate Festival Beverly Hills to Beverly Gardens Park, or the block of Crescent Drive between North Santa Monica Boulevard and South Santa Monica Boulevard.
The costs to relocate Festival Beverly Hills in Beverly Gardens Park are projected to total $65,000 including the estimated costs associated with street closures. Similar to the Art Show, albeit on a much smaller scale, Festival Beverly Hills at Beverly Gardens Park would necessitate some level of street closures along Canon between North Santa Monica Boulevard and Park Way, and along Park Way. Street closures for the Beverly Gardens location, would not necessitate the utilization of an outside vendor and can be done working with Public Works and the Beverly Hills Police Department.
Meeting Date: June 3, 2024
The costs to relocate Festival Beverly Hills along Crescent Drive and adjacent City Hall are projected to total $70,000 including the cost associated with street closures. This location would necessitate the closure of Crescent Drive between North and South Santa Monica Boulevard and use a contractual vendor to facilitate the street closure.
FISCAL IMPACT
The costs for the currently planned 2024 Festival Beverly Hills at Roxbury Park equate to $47,000 and are allocated within the current Community Services Department operating budget. To support the costs of either relocating Festival Beverly Hills to Beverly Gardens Park, or on Crescent Drive and adjacent City Hall, an appropriation of additional funding will be required.
Proposed Site Event Cost Appropriation needed
Beverly Gardens Park $65,000 $18,000
Crescent Drive/City Hall $70,000 $23,000
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends based on the projected costs, the greater flexibility to program and utilize Beverly Gardens as an event space now and moving forward, prior event site experiences, and for the overall festival-goer experience, if Festival Beverly Hills is to relocate, the recommendation is to relocate to Beverly Gardens Park. If there is a desire to relocate Festival Beverly Hills to Beverly Gardens Park or along Crescent Drive this year, or in the future, additional funding will need to be approved by the full City Council, and at the level of associated costs outlined in this report.
Staff is seeking direction from the City Council Arts and Culture Council Liaisons on a revised location for the 2024 Festival Beverly Hills.
Stephanie Harris,
Director of Community Services
Approved By